Drink This Week: The Patiala Peg Cocktail – How to Make It
Tale has it that during 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his cricket team would succeed over a visiting English team. To gain the upper hand, he organized a splendid party the night before the match, at which he served his guests the legendary Patiala pegs. These are famously large four-finger whisky pours, historically gauged from little finger to forefinger. Unsurprisingly, the English players partook excessively, leaving them extremely hungover and, inevitably, defeated the next day. And so, the myth of the Patiala peg was born.
This take on a variation of Old Fashioned cocktail draws inspiration from that original concoction. Here, we offer it from a bespoke large-format bottle, but we've modified the instructions to make it easier for a household kitchen.
Patiala Peg
Makes 1 litre, serving 10-12 drinks.
What's Required
- 725g Scotch whisky blend
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (approximately ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Instructions
Combine all the ingredients in a large bottle. Pour in 130g water, stir until fully incorporated, then transfer it in the refrigerator. You can store it for as long as 21 days.
To serve, measure out roughly 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a short glass packed with ice (ideally one large cube). Enjoy straight away. If you're feeling traditional, you could measure it in by hand instead.
